TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — Help is flowing into the Los Angeles fire zone—including from Tucson. Now a man with deep experience with fire and disasters is headed to L.A. as aRed Cross volunteer.
Randy Ogden is heading into a dangerous world he knows very well. As fires rip through Los Angeles he’s thinking of the people losing so much to the flames.
“Their homes are gone, their personal effects, you know, their wedding pictures, their jewelry, keepsakes from their toddler. You know, all that stuff is gone, and it's just devastating. It's hard for those of us who are working because we understand and remember how bad this is.”
Ogden spent 33 years with Tucson Fire, he retired there as acting Chief, then became Chief of Mount Lemmon’s Fire Department.
His drive to help when disaster strikes sent him to New York after 9/11. There he helped recover the victims from the tower collapse.
“We lost 343 brothers in the fire service. I just thought it was important to be there to lend support. I also did Israel, the arson fires there several years ago. That was just a whole different deployment.”
He will not be leading firefighters In Los Angeles. He’s volunteering as a Red Cross Public Information Officer, making sure people hear how to stay safe and how to tap into the help the Red Cross provides.
“We're there to provide sheltering for you, food for you, clothing for you, and sometimes small financial assistance just to get through the first few days.”
And he says Red Cross volunteers are ready to help with health, mental health and spiritual health as the fires burn deep into lives.
